What if I want just great music???

I’ve dedicated a lot of Blog space so far to Control 4. It is the most versatile system that we have that incorporates and controls features of your entire home with one great system. Controlling your lights, garage door, and more is awesome, but what if I want just a great music system? What if I never wired my house for music, or I live in an apartment/condo? Well then we have the system for you. It’s called Sonos.

Do you remember that old song from Journey? “Anyway you want it, that’s the way you need it, anyway you want it.” That’s Sonos in a nutshell.

With solid and reliable wireless communication between the devices (called Zone Players), you can fill a house with music, up to 32 Rooms!! Only one player has to be connected to your computer network and the rest of the players are online and ready to serve you an unlimited supply of music.

You can listen to internet radio, (all of your favorite stations with no static!!!) your iTunes music, your Windows Media music, Pandora, Napster, Rhapsody, and more. It’s truly an unlimited supply of music. You will never have to buy a CD again, and all the money you’ve invested in iTunes can now be shared around your house.

It can be programmed for an alarm clock, or a sleep timer. Wake up or go to sleep to the same thing every day, or something different every day of the week!

There are a few basic options to consider for speakers. They have a Zone player for you if you have your own speakers, or if you have a surround sound system or amplifier with speakers, or there is a nice portable unit with 5 speakers built in. You could get started with just 1 Sonos piece that gives you access to all of this music.

There a few basic options for control too, let’s talk about what you get for FREE…

Download a free app for iPhone, iTouch, and iPad. Download free desktop software for PC or Mac. As long as you’re within range of your wireless network, you can control Sonos for free with these applications. Sonos also has their own wireless color touch screen controller that is fantastic, and has better battery life than the “i” alternatives plus, it never leaves the house to go to the gym with your spouse.

We have Sonos displayed in all 3 of our stores, and I have a kit that I can bring to your house to show you. You need Sonos in your life. I’ve added it to my Control 4 system as the ultimate music source.

See HomeWorks in the News!

This past Friday, July 9th, HomeWorks was featured on WMBD Channel 31's 6 o'clock news.

One of our clients, Scott Tallyn, was on discussing his HomeWorks installed Control 4 system and how easy it is to control with his iPad and iPhone.

HomeWorks and Control 4 can operate just about anything in your home, but when you control it with the iPad, it is really fun and super easy.

Check out the news clip to see how HomeWorks can make your home work.

Ode to the Control 4 iPad App:

Combine the iPad with Control 4 and you’ll see,

Just how easy running your house can be.

Play your music, turn on your TV

With a quick tap or two, it is very easy.

Adjust the temp, lock the door, and dim the light

Have your friends over for a scary movie night!

Check on the kids, playing in their room,

or in the yard on a camera with zoom.

Is the garage door closed, did I lock the back door?

Hit the good night button and worry no more.

I could go on and on about the capabilities of Control 4 partnered with your iPad. A lot longer than I could continue to come up with rhymes! Control 4 can operate just about anything in your house, but it’s when you control it with the iPad that it is really fun and super easy. The interface is very smooth, and gives you the best of the iPad features like “flicking” through your music and high resolution graphics. Check out this YouTube video to see the how the interface works.

Everything is represented with an icon or a big easy to read button, no squinting required even in a dark theater room!

What do I need to make my iPad work with my Control 4 system you ask? You need a really good wireless network that covers any area of the house that you would use the iPad. You also need a license to connect it to your Control 4 system for security purposes. (You wouldn’t want your neighbor’s iPad to control your garage door!) You need a good integrator who knows how to get it all set up for you and to make sure that your system is updated and ready to communicate with your iPad. Finally, you need lots and lots of time to play with it!

Control 4 has all kinds of products, with lots of really nice features to enhance your lifestyle. Now…you have the greatest accessory to your system. Plus you have all of the other iPad features too, what could be better?

Contact HomeWorks to have your Control 4 system updated and your iPad connected to your system today. Don’t have Control 4 yet? Let us give you a quote on a system that fits your needs, and your budget!

Happy Earth Day!

There are certainly a number of folks who try to capitalize on "being green" on and around Earth Day. Most of all I think that it is good that people have a day that gets them thinking about the environment. Let today be the day you decide you should do something to help the environment!

We have several products that can help you save energy by controlling your lights, HVAC system, an Energy Star rated whole home audio system, etc. But first, it helps to know what in your house is using the most electricity, and how much it is costing you.

This device, the Kill A WATT EZ can calculate the cost of using your electronic devices down to the day/month/year. You can pick one up for about $25 locally at a hardware or home improvement center or online.

Pick one up and start moving it around your house to see what consumes the most electricity in your house. Then you can make educated decisions about whether some of the products you currently have should be replaced, or at least unplugged when you are not using them.

There are some surge protectors like this on from Panamax that we offer that can cut the power to half of the equipment in your home entertainment system until you turn on a key component like the A/V receiver. The everything else will have power available to it and be ready to switch on.

How much power does your house use when you're not there? What are you willing to do about it?

Control 4

One of our favorite and best selling product lines, Control 4, just received some well deserved nationwide attention in USA Today this week. These products, and their creators are shaping how people live their lives in the homes of tomorrow, but they’ve been doing it for 5 years already!

It is the modest intention of Control 4 to have a part in your future too! They are working every day to increase their brand awareness and product lineup to fit into every home and budget. They have product solutions that can simplify your life, save you time, give you a better sense of safety, enhance your lifestyle, and more. They also have a very large focus on saving energy in a big way. Stay tuned for more on that in future blogs!

We think Control 4 is pretty great, and we are excited that more and more people are hearing what it can do for them! Here’s a link to the article:

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2010-03-08-entrepreneur08_ST_N.htm

Remote Simplification

The first of the “Popular Systems” I want to highlight are the Remote Simplification Systems. It’s a classic problem, a coffee table full of remotes; no one knows which one to use to pause the movie. The surround sound system goes un-used most of the time because it’s too much of a hassle, or you have to spend 15 minutes showing your out of town guests or babysitter how to use it.

We can help you clear the remote clutter. We can give you a remote that works, that doesn’t have to be aimed at the TV, the DVD, or the Surround Sound. There’s no complicated button sequences or “cheat sheets” required. We program it and test it. We will teach your family to use it. All you have to do is contact us!

There are a few quick systems shown, and most of them will do way more than control just your TV and gear, but as a simple solution for your problem room, there is nothing better out there. Our prices are for installed systems, so we do all the work. I have one of these systems at my house, for my family to use and my 3 year old knows how to pick out a movie from the DVD changer! (see Control4 Remote System with Movie)

It will be a recurring theme for me to say, “and that’s just the beginning” because there are so many capabilities. The best part is, many people just need “the beginning” to solve their problem. There is nothing wrong with that! If you want more, we can show you more. If you want a lot more, you already have the building blocks and won’t end up with something that’s obsolete.

Welcome to HomeWorks Website!

Hello, and welcome to our brand new HomeWorks website! We are super-excited that we are able to offer you so much more information about our products and services than ever before. If you never saw the old website, you didn’t miss much! Now that you are here, you’ll find quick links to lots of short informative video clips and links to all of the major types of services and products we provide. There are links for all of our most popular systems and packages, customer reviews and much more!

Our goal for this website was to help you learn more about ways that we can “Make Your Home Work.” Sherman’s offers way more than Appliances, Furniture, Mattresses, and TV’s. We can simplify your life, give you music and video all over your house, build you a unique home theater from scratch in your unfinished basement…and that’s just the beginning. Please see more of the new site and contact us with your questions!

Check back here often to this blog where I will highlight new products, special promotions, a featured “Popular System,” or debunk some myth about your automated home taking you hostage.